


Shore Leave (Interlude)

by Bella_Monoxide



Series: Cruisin' [4]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Lovesickness, M/M, Masturbation, One Night Stands, RPF - one character only
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-04
Updated: 2015-07-14
Packaged: 2018-04-07 17:15:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4271436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bella_Monoxide/pseuds/Bella_Monoxide
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daryl reads the letter from Gareth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ramblesandshambles](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ramblesandshambles/gifts).



> This is an episode belonging within the Cruisin' storyline, but takes place on land.  
> I included a link to the picture described in the chapter at the end of the chapter text.

Daryl had sat at his desk for some time, just holding the letter in his hand. Merle had left him alone to read it, but Daryl was struggling. He thought back to the jerk off session in his shower on the cruise ship, where he had shouted Gareth's name at the tiles when he came.

In the end, he just gave in and opened the envelope, reached inside and pulled a folded piece of paper out. When he made to unfold it in order to start reading, a picture that had been slipped inside fell face first onto the desk.

Daryl grabbed it and turned it around. He closed his eyes briefly, and pinched the bridge of his nose. Sighing, he looked at the picture again, wondering who had taken it, as it looked quite professional.

Gareth wore a white t-shirt with a v-neck in it, his hair was expertly done, and his eyes were open and directed straight forward. Light-brown doe like eyes, framed with long dark lashes, seemed to watch Daryl as he studied the picture, and Gareth's full lips were parted ever so slightly, framed by his likewise expertly trimmed beard.

The background was light as well, perfectly contrasting Gareth's hair, beard and eye colour. Well, shit, Daryl thought to himself, guy is still beautiful. As soon as he realised what he had been thinking, he cursed under his breath and put the picture aside for a moment so he could finally read the letter.

 

_Daryl,_

_since I had your full name, I was able to find your address pretty easily. I hope you're not mad that I'm intruding on your privacy, but I felt the need to express my feelings to you. I missed you a lot on this last cruise I've been on, and I feel like there is some sort of deeper connection between us._

_I won't lie to you, though – I have been fucking around in the meantime, and I'm quite certain that you did so as well. Still not sure what this is exactly, but I'd love to see you again, and maybe find out._

_I'm scheduled for two more cruises on a different ship, then will be on yours again. Will you be there, then, too?_

_I'll add my cell number so you can reach me if you want to._

_Gareth_

_PS: I included a picture for you – one of my friends is a professional photographer_

 

Daryl put the letter aside, next to the picture on his desk. For a moment, he entertained the thought of just brushing it all aside – the fact that Gareth had written him in the first place, but also what all he had put into it.

But he was realistic enough to admit to himself that it was simply no use. He was well and truly fucked, as far as the hairdresser was concerned, no pun intended – even if that was true as well.

He knew that he was in too deep, and that Gareth was right about their connection. Of course, that did not mean that he had to like it.

Sighing, Daryl got up to go and take a quick shower before bed, and when he stood under the spray, he thought about Gareth again. He looked down at his hardening cock, almost angry at the organ itself for betraying him like that.

Daryl washed himself quickly, dried off and put on pyjama shorts and a tank top, neglecting his hard length on purpose. He went to bed, but sleep would not come. When he looked at his phone to check the time he saw that over an hour had passed since he had gotten under the sheets.

Letting out a frustrated groan, Daryl got up again and went to the desk. He switched the lamp back on, re-read the letter and looked at the picture some more.

After he had uttered a heartfelt curse or two, he told the Gareth in the picture to screw himself and went back to bed with the vivid mental image of the flamboyant hairdresser, leisurely draped over Daryl's bed on the ship, telling him that he knew exactly how much the barkeeper wanted to do just that.

About ready to pull his hair out, Daryl shoved his pants down and angrily grabbed his hard cock. He began to stroke it roughly, having all the intention of making this as uncomfortable as possible.

Telling himself that he only did it so he would be able to finally sleep, Daryl's hips began to push his dick into his own fist, while he rolled his balls in his other hand. Realising that he was only fooling himself, he closed his eyes and moaned under his breath, trying to keep quiet.

He got rid of the pants, then dragged his shirt off again as well, and went to dig around in his dresser drawer. When he had found what he had been looking for, he returned to the bed and knelt down on it.

Daryl made quick work of lubing up his fingers, popped his tight ass out and found his own back entrance with well practiced moves and began to massage it, slipping a finger inside as soon as possible, while he resumed to stroke his cock.

He slowed his moves though, allowing himself now to enjoy it, and he moaned with his eyes closed as he inserted another finger into his hole, stretching himself. When he felt like he had done enough, he pulled out and picked up a good sized, realistic looking dildo.

Carefully inserting the thing into himself, Daryl breathed throught he stinging sensation while his other hand paid special attention to the head of his cock to provide a little distraction.

Daryl pushed the fake cock into his hole at a steady pace, which he slowly but surely picked up, all the while adjusting his movements on his own cock accordingly. Soon enough, the barkeeper was lost in the sensations he inflicted upon himself, and he felt his release approaching.

He concentrated all his efforts on stroking his rock hard member just right, spreading pre-cum over it everytime his hand reached the tip, as he moaned, still trying to keep it quiet so Merle would not tease him the next day.

His hips pushed forward, seemingly on their own account, and Daryl's eyes wandered over to the picture still lying on top of the desk. As he remembered how it had felt like to be fucked by the very person depicted, he gasped as his orgasm rushed through him, his cock releasing strings of hot cum all over his hand.

Daryl pulled the dildo out, cleared it and the bottle away so he could fall on top of the bed, panting. After a minute to cool down, he curled up on his side, the sheets loosely pulled around himself, and fell asleep, his dreams a tangled mess.

* * *

The next morning saw a disgruntled Daryl at the breakfast table, trying to avoid any conversation, but it was no use. Merle wanted to know about the letter, and he could be very persistent if he wanted to.

Lots of prodding later, Daryl finally cracked, his patience non-existend to begin with anyways, and he told Merle what it was all about in a nutshell – and that Gareth had included a picture as well. He even showed it to Merle, and his brother surprised him.

"Good picture," Merle said, "looks really professional. And he doesn't come off as effeminate as he appeared when I picked you up."

Looking at his brother disbelievingly, Daryl said "Who are you, and what have you done with my brother?"

Merle laughed. "I know, I know. But I promised to try and do better by you, remember? 'Sides, it is a good picture. And you are obviously into him, so I might as well back you up. Right?"

Daryl put his head in his hands and sighed deeply. "I dunno, Merle." He whispered, as he looked back up at his brother. "You know as much as I do that I don't wanna start anything steady. But this sounds an awful lot like it could be just that."

Merle hummed in the affirmative, nodding his head along with it. "I know, little brother. But maybe it's time to change your take on relationships?"

When Daryl looked at him as if he had suddenly grown an additional head, Merle suggested a change of subjects. "How about we go hunting today, and you go out tonight, huh? Try to take your mind off things, have fun, and don't be the bartender yourself for once."

His younger brother nodded, but insisted on going out with Merle first, as they had hardly spent any time with each other since he started working on those cruises. The older Dixon agreed, and they proceeded as planned.

* * *

At around ten that night, Daryl had left his brother and some of his buddies in their favorite drinking joint to drive over to Atlanta and visit his favorite gay bar. He parked his car and went inside, after he had talked to the bouncer for a minute.

Daryl got a drink at the bar and walked around for a while, talking to guys he knew, some of which he had not seen for longer stretches of time, partly because of his weird working schedule.

Several rounds later, he nearly walked into a familiar figure. "Shane? That you?" He asked, already grabbing the hunky guy by his shoulders to hug him. The cop's eyes lit up at the sight of his favorite bartender, and he stepped into the hug all too willingly.

"Daryl," he mumbled into the general direction of Daryl's ear, "how great to meet you here." Daryl nodded in agreement, and suggested for them to find a table to talk. Shane went to get new drinks for them both, then followed Daryl to a booth in the back.

They talked for quite some time, catching up, and Daryl told Shane about Merle's reaction to him being a cop, out of all the possible professions. Shane laughed at that, but got serious right afterwards.

"You know, being a cop and being gay doesn't go too well together," he admitted thoughtfully, and Daryl nodded. "Sure doesn't," he admitted, "but then again, it's pretty tough in most professions."

When Shane agreed, Daryl remembered what he had told him about on the ship, and asked Shane about his co-worker.

"Oh gawd, don't remind me, Daryl." Shane moaned. "He's got marital problems, and since we are on patrol together, I have to listen to all his shit all the goddamned time." The cop buried his face in his hands and groaned.

Daryl put an arm around his shoulders. "That must be very hard for you. Sorry to hear about it, I had hoped that you two would have a chance with each other somehow."

Shane thanked him, and eventually asked about Daryl's love life, such as it were. The bartender delivered a few anecdotes from his work, and Shane asked him questions in between. They were laughing a lot and having a good time, enjoying each other's company.

"So," Shane started, clearly on a more serious note, "you're not at all interested in anything more steady, did I get that right?" "Why," Daryl quibbed, "you interested?" He wiggled his eybrows, but apologised right afterwards.

"Sorry, Shane. I know you would have liked to turn our encounter into something else, this was crappy of me." But Shane shook his head. "It's ok, Daryl." He smiled. "I sure wouldn't mind to refresh my memory, though..." And here, he wiggled his own eyebrows at Daryl, who could not help but laugh.

They had not paid much attention to the people around them, but now one guy who sat down in another booth close to them caught Daryl's eye. Before he could do or say anything though, the guy had popped right back up, noticing him as well.

He stepped up to their booth, and exclaimed "Daryl!" spreading his arms wide, for Daryl to step into, and the bartender could not help but to comply. Hugging the other guy tight to his own chest, he whispered into his well styled hair. "Gareth."

When they pulled back a little so they would be able to talk face to face, Daryl had to hold back from just grabbing the hairdresser's chin and pull him into a heated kiss.

He managed to tell Gareth that he had gotten his letter, when the guy Gareth had been in the process of sitting down with stepped up behind the hairdresser, asking who Daryl was.

"Oh, Sean, I'm sorry. This is Daryl, we met on the cruise." Gareth had stepped away from Daryl, in order to introduce him to the tall, blonde guy with a sunny tan and likewise aura. Sean seemed to just naturally radiate good mood.

Even now, after he had clearly noticed the chemistry between Daryl and Gareth, his general demanor was not diminished. He told Daryl that it was nice to meet him, and the bartender hurried to introduce Shane to them as well.

A shadow of recognition flitted over Gareth's handsome features when he heard the name, and his eyes asked a silent question, to which Daryl nodded ever so slightly, signaling that yes, this was the cop he had told him about.

Gareth winked at them and wished them a good evening, apparently thinking that Shane and Daryl were there together, and even if they had not arrived together, that they would leave that way.

And before Daryl had a chance to correct that assumption, both Sean and Gareth had sat down at a table together, clearly hitting it off with each other.

Daryl slumped down into his seat, his mood suddenly more than dampened. Shane sat next to him and asked the obvious question. "Ok, who's the guy? You met him on the cruise as well?" To which Daryl only managed a weak nod.

"Uh-oh," Shane muttered, "you got it bad for him." It was a statement, not a question, but Daryl looked up into Shane's understanding eyes and nodded.

The cop suggested to go and get some more drinks for them, and that Daryl could tell him the whole story then, if he would like to spill the beans. He did not catch the "I take the drinks, but no talking" Daryl muttered.

Leaning back against the wall behind him, Daryl closed his eyes and waited for Shane to come back, the only thought on his mind being to get shitfaced drunk.

* * *

 

 

 

[The picture described in this chapter](https://de.pinterest.com/pin/229261437256601343/)


	2. A Man in Every Port of Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night at the club pans out in a way neither Daryl nor Shane had anticipated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like this continuation as much as I do. But either way, please let me know what you think in a comment.

When Shane returned with new drinks for himself and Daryl, the bartender on shore leave looked up at him from underneath his half-lidded eyes, and Shane had a hard time not to wrap him up in his arms to comfort him.

Yeah, he thought, you keep telling yourself that. You'd most likely kiss the living shit out of him, cute as he is. Damn.

The cop placed the bottles on the table and sat back down. After a while of drinking in silence, it dawned on him that Daryl might not want to talk about his crush on Gareth at all, if that was even what it was in the first place.

He shook his head when Daryl asked him if he would like another drink as well. "Why not?" Daryl asked standing up, and Shane gave back "Cause it looks like you're planning on getting drunk, and somebody will need to drive your pretty ass back home."

Daryl grinned and went to get himself another beer, and a coke for the law abiding-cop. In the end he did cave and told Shane about how he had met Gareth, but not all the details. Just enough so he would be able to understand his dilemma.

Seeing as Shane was at an impasse himself where love was concerned, he did get it. Sometime into their talk, Gareth and Sean had left, only turning around to wave goodbye.

The hairdresser had used the international gesture for 'call me' in Daryl's direction, and the bartender had managed a nod. But needless to say, he was unhappy with the way the evening had panned out.

* * *

A while later Shane had managed to talk Daryl into dancing, and they swayed to the music together. A few songs in, the musical style changed, and the cop suddenly felt uncomfortable, since he did not know where to put his hands, as he was not exacly used to dance to slow music.

Daryl, being well on his way to getting drunk, had no such qualms. He pulled Shane into his chest and wrapped his arms around him, bent forward and nuzzled his neck.

Shane tried to step back, feeling that it was not right to take advantage of Daryl's state, but the bartender only held him more tightly. The cop thought the hell with it and leaned back in, roaming Daryl's back with his hands.

He seemed to like that, as he moved his own hands up and into Shane's full, wavy hair. He leant in and murmured into the cop's ear how much he loved his hair. Shane blushed, and was very glad that it was not too visible due to the light in the club.

It was only a small step from there to Daryl moving his lips away from Shane's ear and towards his mouth, placing light kisses along the way. The bartender felt his moans more than he heard them, as he lost no time in moving on to kissing Shane full on the lips.

Their dancing at this point was pretty much nonexistent, as they stood tangled up into each other, deepening the kiss. When the song ended, it took both men a moment to even realise that it was over, and an awkward pause emerged.

But Daryl recovered quickly from that and asked Shane if he would like to go home now, which made the cop giggle.

Raising an eyebrow, Daryl waited for an explanation, and after a moment to gather himself, Shane said "Well, you know that you can't drive anymore, but you make it sound like you are asking me to take this somewhere else."

Daryl laughed, but tugged at Shane's hand to get him going, and the cop followed more than willingly.

When they had made it into the parking lot, the question whose vehicle they would use was solved after a minute of discussion. They got into Shane's car and he drove them back to the small town where the Dixons had their house and Shane rented an apartment.

Shane knew the way, seeing as he was a cop in that town, But he still tried to wake Daryl up before they arrived at his house. The bartender rubbed a hand over his face in a feeble attempt at regaining consciousness.

The cop drove into the driveway and waited for Daryl to get out of the car, so he could turn it around to drive to his own home, but the bartender asked him to park and come inside.

"Daryl," Shane started, "do you really think that's a good idea?" "I dunno, Shane. But seeing as we both are apparently into someone else, why the hell not?"

"Good point," Shane grinned, parked the car and killed the engine. Both men got out and Shane followed the younger Dixon to the front door where he fumbled with the keys. The cop held out his hand, and Daryl handed the keys over with a sheepish expression on his face.

Shane opened the door, shaking his head, and Daryl giggled. They moved through the hallway and the living room, and loud snoring was audible when they passed Merle's bedroom.

Daryl, feeling much more awake by then, pulled Shane into his room and closed the door behind them. Shane stepped further inside and noticed the photograph lying on the desk. He picked it up to take a closer look.

"Wow," he exclaimed, "that is a good picture. And," he added after a moment, "I can't blame ya. He is one hell of a good looking guy." Shane placed the photo back and turned around to look at Daryl.

The bartender seemed to have suddenly caught up with all the happenings of the evening, as Shane noticed that his face had turned an alarming shade of green.

Knowing the signs from his own wild days during police academy, Shane made short work of the situation, pulled Daryl out of the room again and only asked him to point out the bathroom.

They arrived just in time. Daryl started to hurl as soon as Shane had pushed him down to kneel in front of the throne, and the cop tried to hold Daryl's hair back for him as best as he could. When it seemed like Daryl was done, he helped him back up and guided him towards the sink to clean himself and brush his teeth.

"You know, I'm a grown ass man, I already know how to brush my teeth," Daryl grumped, but Shane did not budge. "Yes, I am aware of that, Daryl. But I'm not leaving you alone just to make sure that you won't hurt yourself, so you better suck it up."

Daryl gave him a half smile. "Don't feel like sucking anything anytime soon, though." He looked down embarrassed, but Shane only retorted, his face absolute deadpan "Oh, that's ok. I'm perfectly fine with a handjob instead."

Daryl looked at him, trying to find out if he had actually been serious or just made a really good joke. When he saw himself faced with Shane's signature twinkle in those light brown eyes, he could not help but laugh.

Making up his mind quick, Daryl asked Shane if he would like to take a shower with him and spend the night, even if nothing happened between them, and the cop nodded, already starting to pull his shirt off.

They undressed, and Daryl got the shower going. When the water had reached a good temperature, he got under the spray, and Shane followed him. He started to wash Daryl's hair, then moved on to clean his body.

But somewhere along the way of moving his hands over Daryl's impressive stature, Shane began to feel the heat rise within himself. The bartender must have noticed it as well, since they were standing close to each other, and Shane's cock between them began to get hard.

Daryl, being a naughty little shit, could not resist to lean forward to whisper a question into Shane's ear. "How was that about a hand job instead again..?" And with that, he grabbed hold of the young cop's equally impressive shoulders and began to nibble at his ear.

When he started to use his tongue as well, Shane moaned under his breath and tried to steady himself by moving his hands towards Daryl's hips who pushed them forward, so his own cock rubbed against Shane's.

Daryl was really glad that he had brushed his teeth rather thoroughly and used mouthwash afterwards as well to get rid of the awful taste, since he was now dead set on kissing Shane right then and there.

He grabbed hold of the cop's hair again and pulled him close, pressed his lips to Shane's and opened his mouth, using it to urge him to open his as well so he could plunge his tongue right in. Soon enough, both guys were panting, moaning into each other's mouths.

"Please tell me you're alone in there, Darleena," came a gruff voice from the other side of the showercurtain, freezing both Daryl and Shane in place. Their heated make out had effectively prevented them from hearing the bathroom door open, and now they had to somehow turn the situation around.

Making up his mind on the spot, Daryl slipped out from behind the curtain, shielding Shane with his own body from Merle's view, and grabbed a towel to wrap around himself. "Sorry, Merle, we got carried away," he apologised to his older brother, who was taking a leak, seemingly unfazed.

"Hm," he grumbled, tucking everything back inside his pants as he flushed the toilet. "I'll leave you to it, then. See you in the morning." And with that lapidary statement, Merle turned around and moved back to his own bedroom.

* * *

 

Shane, who had used the extra time for a quick wash, stepped out of the shower as soon as the older Dixon had left, and grabbed the towel Daryl held out to him. They gathered their discarded clothes and went back to Daryl's room, where the younger Dixon dug some briefs and a shirt out for Shane to borrow.

Putting them on, Shane saw the look Daryl cast over to where the picture lay. He stepped behind him and put his arms around Daryl's waist, hugging him to his chest. "You sure I can't ease your pain? Even for a short time?"

Daryl hummed under his breath. He seemed to think about it for a minute, then turned around in Shane's embrace to face him.

"Let's just go to bed and see what happens," he mumbled, but his wicked smile should have given him away. It was just that Shane did not even have time to say anything back, as Daryl leaned right in for a long an thorough kiss, and the cop could do nothing but return it.

Shane lost himself completely in the feeling of Daryl's embrace, the passionate kissing, and for a moment he felt like he had traveled back in time just to find himself back on the cruise, making out with Daryl in his room.

Minutes later, Shane began to walk Daryl backwards, and when the bartender's legs hit his bed, the cop gave him a gentle shove to make him lie down.

He straddled his lap and began to move his hips, and Daryl moaned from the friction. He grabbed the back of Shane's head and pulled him down into a deep kiss, during which he moved his hands along the cop's buff body, ending up at his hips.

Daryl grabbed for the hem and ripped the shirt back off Shane's body, then rolled them over so that Shane came to lie underneath Daryl, who made short work of his own shirt as well. Shane took advantage of that fact immediately, touching Daryl's chest first.

When he scraped his nails lightly over the bartender's nipples, Daryl groaned deeply and leant into the touch. "Daryl?" Shane whispered, slightly out of breath, and the bartender only hummed. "Touch yourself for me? Wanna see that glorious cock of yours again."

"Gawd, Shane," Daryl whispered, as he thrust his briefs down to get access to his throbbing hard-on. Shane moaned loudly as he watched Daryl giving himself a few rough strokes. The bartender's head fell back as he groaned with pleasure, and Shane tugged his pants further down, trying to get Daryl completely naked for the second time.

His lover for a night lifted his ass slightly in order to pull his leg up and roll on his side, onto the bed next to Shane, where the cop freed him of that last piece of clothing. Shane got up and rid of his own briefs, and Daryl, hand still on his leaking member, watched closely as Shane stood there in all his naked glory.

Daryl told him to get lube and condoms out of the dresser behind him, and Shane followed his directions. Back on the bed, he leant down to kiss Daryl, who sneaked a hand around his shaft and started to stroke Shane at an agonisingly slow pace, making the cop whine for want of more.

"Shane," Daryl moaned, "I wanna fuck you." He had meant to ask the cop if he was ok with that, but Shane immediately opened the bottle to lube up his fingers and started to prepare himself. "Damn, that is one sexy sight," the bartender stated, got up into a kneeling position and watched while he touched Shane everywhere.

"You fucked anyone else since we last saw each other?" Daryl asked almost conversationally as he grabbed a condom to wrap himself up. Shane only managed a nod, watching Daryl as he rolled the condom down and lubed his sheathed length up.

When Daryl was ready, Shane felt best prepared as well and pulled his fingers out. "Few one night stands I picked up at the club." He added, and Daryl nodded.

He grabbed Shane's ass and maneuvered him into position, lined himself up and carefully pushed his cock inside. Shane groaned from the pleasurable pain and had a hard time not to push his ass back on Daryl's cock.

The bartender held on to Shane's hips to steady him, and pushed until his cock was fully seated inside. "Let me know when I can get going," he gasped, feeling Shane's tightness engulfing his cock.

"Oh gawd, it's so hard not to start fucking you right away, Shane." He admitted, and the cop groaned back "Want you to, Daryl. Fuck me hard, just take me." He pleaded.

"Nope, only when you're ready," Daryl answered, standing his ground. "But once you are, I will." The promise hung heavy in the air, and when Shane finally nodded to signal Daryl that he had adjusted enough, the bartender made good on that promise.

He grabbed Shane's ass in a tight grip and pulled out, only leaving the head of his cock inside. He teased Shane's entrance with it and groanded from the pleasure himself. After he had had some fun with that, he thrusted back in without inhibition, pushing Shane's entire body forward in the process, and set up an unrelenting pace.

Their combined moaning was accompanied by the slapping sounds their bodies made with every contact, and Shane braced himself against the mattress, holding on for dear life.

Daryl reached out and grabbed Shane's shoulder to steady himself while he took the cop's rock-hard cock into his other hand to stroke it in sync with his thrusts into the man's ass.

Shane had already been leaking all over the sheets, and was bound to burst any second now. "So close, Daryl," he whispered almost inaudibly, but the bartender had heard him and picked up his pace one more time, fucking them both into a shattering orgasm.

After he had gotten rid of the condom, Daryl crashed down next to Shane. Both men were panting from the exertion. It took them a while to regain their breath, and when they did, Shane sat up and looked at Daryl.

"Come on, let's go get some sleep. You wanna change the sheets first?" He looked down at the mess he had made. Daryl started to laugh, and Shane looked at him questioningly.

"It's just," Daryl explained when he had caught himself again, "we both could use another shower now, huh?" Shane had to laugh as well, then suggested for them to take one together in the morning.

"Hm," Daryl hummed while he wrestled with the sheets, "technically, it already is morning."

Shane bumped Daryl's shoulder with his fist and quibbed "smartass," but he smiled when he said it. Lying back down, he opened his arms wide for Daryl to snuggle up into, and the bartender looked at him as if he was waiting for some explanation.

"Don't you think you need a hug tonight?" Shane told him as he made a beckoning motion with his hands. Daryl shook his head at Shane's antics, but he lay down next to him nontheless and pulled the fresh sheets over them both.

He curled up into Shane's side, one arm lying on his chest. Shane, both arms wrapped around Daryl's muscular body, bent his head down and kissed him slowly, then whispered into his ear "Night, Daryl."

Daryl smiled and told him goodnight as well, and they both slept soundly until a knock shattered the peaceful silence in Daryl's bedroom way too early on the next morning.


	3. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl and Shane part; the Dixon brothers drive to Atlanta to retrieve Daryl's truck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It turned out to be a rather long epilogue, but I did not feel like splitting it up just for that reason alone.  
> Please let me know what you think in a comment.

Groaning loudly, Daryl reluctantly opened one eye. He closed it again, in the hope that the knock was just some leftover sound from a dream, but to no avail.

His bedroom door vibrated with another hard knock to it, and Daryl scrambled up. He stumbled out of bed, hastily put on a pair of briefs and opened the door to a grinning Merle.

"Morning, dear brother," he trilled, "y'all refreshed from a good night's sleep?" Merle wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, and Daryl felt the urge to throw the door right back into his way too cheerful face.

"Whaddaya want, Merle?" He whispered hoarsely, belatedly thinking of Shane who might still be sleeping. Merle, however, seemed to be above such qualms.

"Oh, Darleena, don't be like that. I just want to have breakfast with my baby brother before he goes on his next cruise." He boomed, and Daryl clenched his teeth, the loud voice doing nothing to soothe his headache.

"I had to leave my truck in Atlanta yesterday, so we have to get that back." He explained, and Merle nodded.

"How 'bout we all go to Atlanta in my car and have breakfast together, get Daryl's truck back on the way?" A voice from behind Daryl suggested, and Merle's jaw dropped visibly when Shane's head popped up over Daryl's shoulder.

Trying hard not to laugh about his brother's surprise, Daryl nodded and agreed with Shane. They all arranged to meet again after both Daryl and Shane had a shower, and Daryl went first, as they both did not fell like taking one together with Merle being around like that.

When Daryl walked back into his room afterwards, he saw himself faced with a sheepish looking Shane. The cop held his phone up and explained "I just checked my phone and found a couple messages."

"Hm. The crush..?" Daryl guessed, and he could tell by the slight blush creeping over Shane's cheeks that he had guessed correctly. "What did he want?" He asked curiously.

"Needs my help with something or other, but I think he just wants to blow off some steam. Apparently, his wife is being a bitch again." Shane sighed as he put his face in his hands. "Gawd, Daryl, I'm so tired of all that crap."

The bartender crouched down in front of him and put his hands on Shane's shoulders in a comforting gesture.

"What do you feel like doing? You can ignore the messages and still come with us." He offered, but Shane shook his head. "You wanna shower here?" Daryl asked. "Thank you, but no, I'll just drive by my apartment."

He looked up at Daryl and grabbed his hands that still lay on his shoulders, holding both of them in his own for a moment. "I'm sorry, Daryl." He muttered, but the bartender pulled him up out of his sitting position and wrapped him into a tight hug.

"About what, Shane?" He whispered into the cop's ear. "You just go and do what you think is best, you hear?" He encouraged.

Shane turned his head slightly and whispered "But I dunno what that is. Not anymore." "Because of us?" Daryl inquired, and felt relieved when Shane shook his head.

"No, not because of us. It's just, their marriage is all over the place, and he's running around in circles. Nothing ever really changes, and all I can think about is how I wish to be there for him, you know?" He explained, shooting a pleading look into Daryl's direction, who promptly understood.

"As his partner, not his friend. Right?" "Yeah. And I think I never might get that chance." Shane hung his head, and they hugged each other again. Daryl moved his hand into the hair at the back of Shane's head and tilted his own head.

After a look into Shane's light brown eyes to make sure it was ok, he leaned forward and softly kissed him. The cop leaned into the kiss and responded with passion.

The clearing of a throat from the doorway had them breaking the kiss and stepping away from each other, both turning towards Merle.

Before the older Dixon could say anything, Daryl told him that they had a change of plans, and it would just be the brothers to go and get the truck. Merle nodded and went to get his keys while Daryl got dressed.

He and Shane walked outside and said goodbye at the cop's car. He told Daryl that his co-worker was going on a holiday with the family, to try and save that marriage, and Daryl asked him if he thought that it would work, but Shane shook his head, stating that he did not think so.

He left and Daryl walked over to his brother's truck and got in next to Merle. They drove to Atlanta, and Merle was uncharacteristically quiet for a long time.

* * *

When they had nearly reached the big city, he asked Daryl if there was something going on between him and the cop, since he had been such a close call for Daryl on his first cruise, but his younger brother shook his head.

"No, Merle. He has a crush on his co-worker, but the guy is married with kids." The older Dixon nodded in understanding, and they changed the topic, trying to decide where to go for breakfast.

They went to a diner, and after they had chosen a booth to sit in, a preppy waitress turned right up to take their order, all the while making eyes at Daryl, but it was Merle who tried to flirt with her.

When she went away with their order, the older brother playfully kicked Daryl under the table. "You always ruin my chances with the ladies, little brother," he chastised, and Daryl looked up. "What?"

Merle rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and that is the best part. You never even notice that you do that all the time. Them waitresses are flirting with you, and it always flies right over your pretty head." The older Dixon sighed, and Daryl punched him in the shoulder.

"So," Merle asked, "wanna tell me what happened yesterday? 'S not like you to get hammered like that." Daryl waited until the waitress had finished serving them their food, realising now that she did indeed flirt with him, and told Merle all about last night after she had left them alone to eat.

When Daryl had finished recounting the events of the night, only interrupted a few times with questions from his older brother, asking about some detail or other, Merle looked at him and confessed that he felt sorry about insisting on Daryl having a night on the town, so to speak, but his younger brother shook his head.

"It's fine, Merle, don't dwell on that, a'ight? I had a nice evening, not your fault Gareth happened to be at the same club." He sighed and signaled for the waitress to top their coffee off and bring the check, then continued.

"You know, I really don't know what to do here. We both like each other a lot and have some sort of connection, yet at the same time, hit on other guys all the time. Is it just me, or does that sound a little fucked up to you as well?"

He looked at Merle, but the older Dixon put his hands up. "Don't ask me, baby brother. But it seems to me like it would be a good idea for the both of you to sit down and talk, eventually."

The waitress returned to their table, and both Dixons looked at her questioningly, since they had already paid during their exchange.

But it appeared that the young woman had plucked up her courage to talk to Daryl, asking him if he would be interested in going out sometime. Daryl tried hard not to roll his eyes, mentally reminding himself that not every person possessed a gaydar.

He explained to her that he was not interested in women, and she walked back to the counter, a sad look on her face.

When Daryl and Merle walked towards the exit, they overheard her talking to her co-worker about the hottest guys always being either taken or gay, and both Dixons had to smile against their will.

The smile fell from Daryl's face as quickly as it had appeared when he realised who was walking towards them on their way into the diner. Merle tensed next to him, muttering a curse under his breath, and Daryl knew that his older brother had recognised at least one of the men as well.

Then the time it took the four men to reach the same spot on the pavement on their way to and fro the diner, respectively, was up. Sean nodded in greeting, but did not say anything, clearly sensing the tension in the air between them.

But even Gareth seemed to pick up on the awkwardness of the situation. In the end, it was Daryl who started talking, by introducing his brother to Sean and Gareth.

Merle told them hi but sent a glare into Gareth's direction, making clear for him to tread carefully, and the hairdresser visibly blanched.

Satisfied for the moment, Merle turned towards Daryl, told him he would wait in the car, then walked towards the parking lot after telling the other two men goodbye.

Gareth turned to Sean and asked him to go into the diner and wait for him there, so he could talk to Daryl for a moment, and the blonde man agreed. After he had left, Gareth looked at Daryl as if waiting for him to start talking.

It took the bartender a moment, but then the words rushed out of his mouth. "I got your letter, and I have been thinking about you a lot as well. I only went out yesterday to clear my head, then there you were, already with another guy."

Here, Gareth cut in. "Yeah, but you were with the cop yourself. I assumed..." "See, that's just it – you assumed." Daryl gave back. He raked his hands through his hair and sighed. "We were just catching up, Shane and I."

"So," the hairdresser inquired, "does that mean you did not leave with each other then?" Daryl cast his eyes down and blushed. "We did leave together, but only after you left with Sean and I got drunk."

Suddenly, he found himself wrapped up in Gareth's arms, and the hairdresser whispered into his ear. "Do you know how cute you are when you blush, Daryl?" The bartender could not help himself, but placed his head on Gareth's shoulder and hugged him back.

After a minute though, they both stepped back and looked at each other. "How about this." Gareth suggested. "When we are on the cruise together again, we talk? See what may be or not be? Hey," he added excitedly, "are you on that one I mentioned in my letter?"

Daryl nodded, and Gareth beamed at him. The bartender spoke up then. "So let me get this straight. You mean that we both are free to do whatever we please with whoever we happen to take a liking to – until we meet again on that cruise?"

Gareth looked thoughtful for a moment, then added "Of course, the usual keep it safe rules apply, right." And Daryl nodded.

They stood in front of each other for a few more minutes, both of them feeling awkward after their bargain, until Daryl visibly shook himself and told Gareth that he should go to catch his brother.

"You shouldn't keep Sean waiting any longer, either, huh?" He added, shooting the hairdresser a sly look.

"Hm, yeah." Gareth answered, but stared right back. He took a step towards Daryl, opened his arms as an invitation for him to step into, and after a moment of hesitation, he did.

While they hugged each other tight one last time, Gareth whispered into Daryl's ear "If it makes you feel better – I am jealous of your cop friend, too." He let his lips brush over the bartender's ear, and the softest of moans escaped Daryl's throat before he could stop himself.

* * *

 

When Daryl climbed into the passenger seat next to Merle, he honestly did not know how to feel about what just happened.

They drove over to the club where Daryl's old truck was parked and spent some time sitting in Merle's car, talking, as the younger Dixon had ended up recounting all that had transpired between him and Gareth in front of that diner.

Merle tried to be a good brother and listend, even though the older Dixon was not too keen to hear all the details. After Daryl had ended his report, Merle suggested for them to just drive home and do something fun together, just to take their minds off things.

Since they had been hunting just the day before, they decided to work on Merle's bike for some time.

At some point during the afternoon, Merle Dixon suddenly burst into a fit of laughter, and Daryl had to wait for quite a while until his brother had calmed himself enough to explain his sudden outburst.

"I just remembered that waitress, you know?" Daryl, still at a loss, gestured for Merle to continue.

"Well, both Gareth and that Sean dude are easy on the eyes, as they say, right..?" He added, and Daryl smacked his own forehead, which resulted in a poor version of warpaint that made his brother chuckle.

"Of course," the younger Dixon exclaimed, "that poor girl will find all her prejudices confirmed during just one shift at work!" Both Dixons burst into laughter again.

When they had calmed back down some, Merle sent Daryl inside to clean up, teasing him about the fact that he always managed to mess his pretty face up when he worked on bikes or cars.

In the evening, Daryl had to pack his stuff up for his next cruise job, and Merle walked in with some of his younger brother's laundry, only to find him holding the picture of Gareth in his hand. "What's on your mind, lil' brother?" He asked while he put the clothes on Daryl's bed.

Sighing, he answered "Just thinking if it is a good idea to pack this as well, you know?" Merle nodded.

"Well," he responded, "I would say pack it, and that letter as well. Or at least, save his number to your phone. Not that I'm such an expert on matters of the heart," the older Dixon exclaimed the last part dramatically, both hands clasped above his own heart, batting his lashes for good measure, "but I think you might regret it if you leave it here."

Daryl had to smile at Merle's antics, which, of course, had been his older brother's intent all along.

Shoving him playfully, Daryl prompted Merle to leave him alone to finish packing, and afterwards met him in the livingroom, as the brothers had decided to go out to a bar together on Daryl's last night on shore leave.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment to share your thoughts.


End file.
